TEA-DRINKING HABITS REDUCE HEART ATTACK
Regularly drinking tea can significantly reduce the risk of developing heart attack one of the biggest studies of its kind suggests.
We have always known the calming effects of a cup of tea, but, according to a recent report, people who drink it in large amounts are the least likely to have another heart attack. Researchers believe the protection in tea may be coming from flavonoids-antioxidants that are found naturally in various foods, including fruit and vegetables such as apples, onions and broccoli. Although some healthy effects of antioxidants are known, this is the first time researchers have found that flavonoids protect after a heart attack. In the research, reported last week in the medical journal Circulation, researchers quizzed almost 2,000 people a few days after they had suffered a heart attack about their tea-drinking habits.They found that in the previous year, more than half drank no tea, 615 were moderate drinkers (14 cups a week) and 26 were heavy consumers (more than 14 cups). Four years later, and after 313 of the patients had died, the researchers went back to see if the death rate varied with tea drinking habits. They found that the death rate among moderate drinkers was 28 per cent lower than that of the non-drinkers, while among the heavy tea drinkers the death rate was 44 per cent lower. Dr Kenneth Mukamal, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, who led the study, said: 'Flavonoids are probably the best guess for the apparent benefits of tea in this study.' Just how flavonoids do protect is not clear. One idea is that in people with heart disease, they improve the blood vessels' ability to relax.
by dailymail
We have always known the calming effects of a cup of tea, but, according to a recent report, people who drink it in large amounts are the least likely to have another heart attack. Researchers believe the protection in tea may be coming from flavonoids-antioxidants that are found naturally in various foods, including fruit and vegetables such as apples, onions and broccoli. Although some healthy effects of antioxidants are known, this is the first time researchers have found that flavonoids protect after a heart attack. In the research, reported last week in the medical journal Circulation, researchers quizzed almost 2,000 people a few days after they had suffered a heart attack about their tea-drinking habits.They found that in the previous year, more than half drank no tea, 615 were moderate drinkers (14 cups a week) and 26 were heavy consumers (more than 14 cups). Four years later, and after 313 of the patients had died, the researchers went back to see if the death rate varied with tea drinking habits. They found that the death rate among moderate drinkers was 28 per cent lower than that of the non-drinkers, while among the heavy tea drinkers the death rate was 44 per cent lower. Dr Kenneth Mukamal, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, who led the study, said: 'Flavonoids are probably the best guess for the apparent benefits of tea in this study.' Just how flavonoids do protect is not clear. One idea is that in people with heart disease, they improve the blood vessels' ability to relax.
by dailymail
